SAN DIEGO -- The baseball world measured the Padres' progress this season by noting the big-name players they would be putting on the field every night. Manny Machado is at third, top prospect Fernando Tatis Jr. is at short, and Wil Myers is back where he's comfortable in left field.

The biggest sign of improvement in San Diego, however, might be the players who aren't on the field at all -- at least not at first pitch.

"We've got guys on the bench that can start for other Major League clubs," said manager Andy Green, before reflecting back to his first three seasons on the job. "That was never the case. I mean, that wasn't even close to the case."

Two years ago, the Padres managed to complete a full season with three Rule 5 picks on their big league roster. They opened the year with four catchers.

Now? Hunter Renfroe, Franchy Cordero and Francisco Mejía sat for two games before they were inserted into the lineup Saturday. Franmil Reyes, Manuel Margot and Austin Hedges gave way. A regular rotation should persist throughout the year.

Perhaps the most important aspect of the Padres' deep bench is the purpose each player serves. The breakdown is pretty simple. In the infield, Greg Garcia will come off the bench infrequently. He's there to serve in an emergency capacity behind Machado, Tatis, Ian Kinsler and Eric Hosmer (though he might get a start or two against right-handed pitching).

In the outfield and behind the plate, the philosophy is a whole lot different.

"We've got five really good outfielders," Green said. "... There's just going to be a rotation with these guys that keeps them fresh, keeps them locked in. We'll do our dead-level best to put them in positions where we think they'll be successful."

Case in point: Margot, Cordero and Reyes. The righty-hitting Margot started in center against two left-handers on Thursday and Friday. Cordero, who struggles against lefties but rakes against righties, will get plenty of starts against right-handers. It's a pretty basic platoon.

But the Padres sacrifice a lot defensively when they leave Margot on the bench. So Green made it clear that in late-and-close situations where the Padres lead, center field still belongs to Margot. Cordero will either slide to right field and replace Reyes, or he'd come off the bench to do so.

Behind the plate, the playing-time split isn't so simple. Hedges will get the bulk of the reps. But Mejia -- MLB Pipeline's No. 26 overall prospect -- wouldn't have been promoted if he were going to sit six days a week.

There's no real platoon advantage in either case. The righty-hitting Hedges has reverse splits and the switch-hitting Mejia has always been much better against left-handers. Green indicated he'll make that decision on a day-to-day basis.

But the mere fact that the Padres have two quality catching options is a change from the past. It's especially important considering the shift within the sport toward a two-catcher system. Last season only one catcher, the Cubs' Willson Contreras, caught three quarters of his team's innings.

"I couldn't speak to that for other clubs," Green said. "We have two guys we love. If that eliminates somebody from the batting title, we're not that worried about it. Our guys are both really good, and they're both going to be good complements to one another."

In a long season, that kind of depth might go a long way.

Noteworthy

• The Padres designated outfielder Socrates Brito for assignment, three days after they claimed him off waivers from the D-backs. That means Brito is set to go through waivers again, though the Padres are hopeful he'll clear this time and they can stash him at Triple-A.

"We took him because we like him," Green said. "We'd love to have him. He's very athletic and provides even more depth to a deep outfield. As you found out last year, guys get hurt, things happen where your outfield thins really fast. If you've got a really good athlete that can play all over the outfield, that's a great thing to have."

The move cleared space for Saturday's starter Nick Margevicius to have his contract selected.

• Right-hander Chris Paddack, MLB Pipeline's No. 33 overall prospect, is slated to make his Major League debut Sunday. He will throw to Hedges, who has caught his fair share of big league debuts in his career.

"I'm about as excited as I could be to catch a guy's first outing," Hedges said. "Any time he's been asked to step up and rise to the occasion, he does it."

• Hosmer, who batted fifth in the first two games of the season, jumped into the No. 2 spot Saturday. Green hinted that's where Hosmer will generally hit against right-handers, one place ahead of Machado.